Why are some Western nations tiptoeing around pro-Khalistan separatists?

Violent protests and attacks by pro-Khalistan elements outside Indian diplomatic missions in the US, Britain and Canada in recent days are the latest warning that Western law enforcement agencies need to take the matter seriously.

Western cities shouldn't be a staging ground for dangerous campaigns. Over the past weeks, supporters of Khalistan have smashed windows of Indian diplomatic missions, tried to burn a consulate building (San Francisco), desecrated the Indian flag (London), threatened the life of the Indian ambassador and assaulted a journalist (Washington), vandalised Hindu temples with graffiti (Melbourne), and indulged in hate speech all around under the cover of 'freedom of expression'. The cover needs to be blown. Such actions are nothing but an abomination of the concept and a distortion of the privilege.

While senior officials, including US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, have condemned the violence, a lot more needs to be done to monitor extremists and to prevent them from acting out their fantasies. If violence against diplomatic facilities is a punishable crime, why are people rarely punished? There should be no dearth of CCTV footage to identify the perpetrators. Or of offences. The leader of Sikhs for Justice, an extremist group in the US, has published friendly letters to Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin openly seeking help. US officials don't look kindly at either country.

But as a 2021 Hudson Institute report on Khalistani activism and Pakistani support (bit.ly/40smjBu) said, 'Unfortunately, the United States government has shown no interest in violence committed by Khalistan activists, even though the Khalistan campaign's most ardent supporters are located in western countries.'

Despite urgent Indian requests, Western governments have 'remained unresponsive to India's appeals', say the report's authors Aparna Pande, Christine Fair, Husain Haqqani, Sam Westrop, Seth Oldmixon and Michael Rubin. That so many experts were willing to put their name on the report was to convey a sense of urgency. As the report stressed, 'anticipation' is a crucial part of national security planning and investigating.

The report is a comprehensive account of various extremist groups in the US and Pakistan's role in guiding their activities - a good starting point. Unless law enforcement gets ahead of the problem, the horrible 1980s could return when Khalistanis plotted attacks and began to control politics in Canada and spread money in the US political system.

The Khalistan movement is mainly an export of radical elements within the diaspora - Jagjit Singh Chauhan introduced the concept of Khalistan after moving to Britain in the early-late 1960s because he had lost assembly elections in Punjab.

If anyone needs reminding, Khalistanis were responsible for the June 23, 1985, bombing of Air India Flight 182 'Kanishka' from Toronto that killed all 329 people on board. The less said about the botched Canadian investigation the better. Canadian politics is so mixed up with Khalistanis that the country's prime ministers dare not step out of line. In fact, Justin Trudeau invited a Khalistani to a reception on his last visit to India.

Young, hip Canadian politicians like Jagmeet Singh don't condemn Sikh terrorists because it's votes and money. They can say with a straight face, 'I don't know who was responsible' for the Air India bombing. The few brave enough to speak out, as Liberal Party MP Ujjal Dosanjh did in the 1980s, are brutally attacked and continue to face threats. A Canadian Sikh journalist Tara Singh Hayer was shot dead for writing strongly against the Air India bombing even though he supported the 'cause'.

For too long, separatists living in the luxury of the West have preached treason from a safe distance and faced no consequences. As a result, pro-Khalistani voices have got louder and the capture of gurdwaras by extremists more brazen. The latest round of coordinated protests in Western cities was sparked by the hunt in India for Amritpal Singh, a Khalistan sympathiser, who tries to model himself after Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale in garb and speech. Until a year ago, Singh was running his family's transportation business in Dubai. Many in Punjab question his legitimacy and methods.

As do many Sikhs abroad. But pro-Khalistan elements dominate and silence the voices of reason. Yes, diaspora politics is messy and difficult to understand, but reality demands comprehension and action. The synching of Khalistan and Kashmir 'causes' over the last three decades under the direction of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has made matters worse.

But as the Hudson Institute report bluntly says, 'Since the Americans did not view the Khalistan movement as a direct threat to US security or interests, little effort was made to independently corroborate 'credible reports' of Pakistani support or to act decisively against the Khalistan groups.'

Rabidly separatist groups such as Sikhs for Justice and its self-styled leader can call for secession of Punjab and face no repercussions. They feel protected by official indifference and by a generous judicial system that can be easily exploited.